PAGUDPUD, Ilocos Norte — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday said the Philippines needs to build more renewable power sources as more businesses are being required to sell products made using green or clean energy.

While climate change remains the “paramount concern” for the country’s push towards having a larger share of renewables in the energy mix, several industries — such as mining — have buyers who prefer to purchase from factories that do not rely on coal-fired power plants, Marcos Jr. said in his speech when he visited the Pagudpud Wind Farm, the largest wind farm in the Philippines.

“Kailangan patuloy ang ating pagtatayo ng mga facilities kagaya nito dahil kailangan ngayon sa market ay clean energy,” he said.

“Ito ‘yung isang natutunan ko noong kausap ko ‘yung mga mining na kompanya, ‘yung mga malalaki, ika nila… ‘yung buyer kailangan patunayan ninyo that you use clean energy para gawin itong produkto ninyo, kung hindi, hindi namin bibilhin,” he explained.

“So it is not just talking about climate change. It is not just talking about helping the renewables gain a bigger percentage of the energy mix. It is also a practical matter. This is the way we do business today,” he added.

Under the Philippines’ renewable energy plan, the country targets to increase to 35 percent of the share of renewable energy in the power mix by 2030.

In November 2022, Marcos Jr. told leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) that half of the Philippines’ power would be sourced through renewable power plants by 2040.

• Renewables to supply half of PH power needs by 2040, Marcos tells APEC leaders

The Philippines continues to consider newer technologies to harness more power from renewable sources, the President told guests who attended the presentation of the 160MW Pagudpud Wind Farm.

“We continue to work on all of the sources of renewable. As I mentioned solar briefly, tinitingan natin ‘yung pagagandahin natin ‘yung mga geothermal, ‘yung mga dam natin baka puwede pang i-expand ang hydrothermal na power na kinukuha natin diyan,” he said.

“Tinitingnan na rin natin ‘yung nuclear power,” he said.

“Huwag kayong ninerbiyosin. Titiyakin natin na lahat ‘yan ay magiging ligtas at walang – hindi maaari magkaroon ng mga ‘yung naririnig natin mga Fukushima, mga Three Mile Island. That’s old technology that will not happen anymore. So we will make sure of all that,” he added.

Marcos Jr. also lauded the AC Energy Corporation (ACEN) for boosting its wind farms in Ilocos Norte, saying his home province is very blessed with strong winds suitable to be harnessed and converted into electricity.

“It is a good place to be because it is very important to not only Ilocanos, not only tayo dito sa Ilocos Norte but for the entire Philippines,” he said.

“That is why I am here today because it is important to highlight the importance of our shift from fossil fuels to renewables,” he said.

The Pagudpud Wind farm is expected to have 32 wind turbine generators, each capable of producing 5 MW of power, according to data from ACEN.

In the first quarter of 2023, phase one of the project has already produced 80MW, while the other half of the project is expected to be completed before December 2025.

ACEN has invested P11.8 billion in the project, said Ayala Corporation chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.

“We’re proud to say it has helped over 1,200 jobs since the 3 year construction period,” he said.

“We’re hopeful that this leadership will enable the Philippines to become Southeast Asia’s leading renewable energy producer,” he said.

ACEN operates 2 other wind farms in Ilocos Norte.

Once it completes the 99 wind turbines in Ilocos Norte, ACEN’s wind farms are expected to generate a total of 360MW of wind capacity, which could cover 1.3 percent of Luzon’s annual demand, according to data from the company.